November 1943 (Vol. 12, No. 4), pages 349 to 365
Transcription by Harriette Jensen; HTML composition by Name withheld by request;
digitized with permission of the Kansas State Historical Society.
Numbers in brackets refer to notes at the end of the article.

LEWIS BODWELL regarded the institution of slavery as the
personification of evil, and he was in complete agreement
with those who would oppose its further expansion, and
sustain the champions of freedom upon the Kansas prairies.
So intense were his feelings upon this issue, that they
permeate his entire correspondence, and make him a
pronounced partisan upon the great question of the hour,
even before reaching his destination in the West.
[152] After arriving in Kansas, he was impressed by
the prevalence of illegality and violence, and had little
confidence in Gov. J. W. Geary, even though he "promises
well." Nevertheless, Bodwell took comfort in the belief that
eventually slavery would be excluded from Kansas.
[153] Like many other Free-State men, he viewed with
great foreboding a victory of Buchanan, and wrote:

Many such are
founding their hopes & forming plans, predicated on
the result of the coming election for President. Many now
out of the territory will remain & many more will go
in case Buchanan succeeds; so certain do they consider it
that his election is but the prelude, to more violent,
continued and successful efforts to subdue freedom in
Kansas. We look upon it as the death Knell of our hopes,
if it comes. . . [154]

When
Geary reestablished order, a difference of opinion soon
arose in the Free-State ranks as to the best course to
pursue. One faction wished to remain loyal to the Topeka
constitution and its slate of officers, the other desired
freedom to support whoever and whatever would most promote
the cause of freedom. [155] The issue was brought to
a point by the question of whether the Free-State men should
participate in the coming election for delegates to the
Lecompton constitutional convention -- a movement sponsored
by the Proslavery legislature, and opposed by the governor.
On March 10, 1857, a Free-State convention was held in
Topeka, which prepared an address to the American people.
[156] Bodwell apparently attended the meeting, and
wrote that it was composed of various parties and sects,
"'small-fisted farmers, greasy mechanics and filthy
operatives,' physicians, lawyers and clergymen, they were
unanimous in their final decision." [157] The
chief question at issue, Bodwell reported, was whether the
Free-State men should participate in the election of the
following June, for members of a constitutional convention,
as appointed by the Proslavery legislature. It was
unanimously decided not to do so, since the initial steps
were entirely in the hands of their enemies, who could fix
the qualifications for voters, and even import them from
outside; and finally, they had no congressional enabling
act, which Bodwell believed essential for the formation of a
constitution. [158] He remarked that the address
which was drawn up was a reply "to the infamously and
notoriously false document put forth by the Lecompton
Convention." [159]

During
the spring of 1857 a great wave of emigrants arrived in
Kansas, predominately from the free states, and Bodwell
wrote in a hopeful vein:

On our political
horizon some clouds are seen, & of immediate
results we have some fears; but in the ultimate sweep
of our cause, we have the utmost confidence.
Immigration at a rate wholly unprecedented has been
pouring in upon us, since early in February, bringing in
a people almost unanimous in their opposition to
slavery. . . . [God] will speedily avenge his
people, ,"tho. he bear long with them." [160]

During
the following summer, the Free-State counsels continued to
waver, although the growing strength of their party prompted
an increasing number to favor participation in the
territorial elections of their opponent, and thus "capture"
the government. This issue led to many conventions
throughout the territory, [161] culminating in a
general Free-State meeting at Grasshopper Falls, late in
August, 1857. For the first time it was resolved that all
Free-State men should participate in the territorial
election of October 5, and thus "rely upon the faithful
fulfillment of the pledge of Governor Walker." [162]
After the election, which proved a Free-State victory,
Bodwell wrote that they had entered it on the governor's
declaration that it was not territorial but United States
law. They succeeded, contrary to expectation, yet despite
their "overwhelming actual majority," the only thing that
saved them was that the governor "exceeded his
instructions!!!" by throwing out 2,800 votes, which gave
them control of the legislature. Their future was not all
clear, but "the morning cometh." [168]

In
an election scheduled for late in December, the Lecompton
constitutional convention now tried, by "hook or crook," to
definitely establish slavery in Kansas. To avoid this a
Free-State convention was held at Lawrence December 2, 1857,
which repudiated the Lecompton proposals, and requested the
submission of both the Topeka and Lecompton constitutions to
a fair vote. [164] Bodwell was a member of the
convention, and wrote the following day that "the goal is
almost won." The people ridiculed the Lecompton proposals,
he asserted, and since the Free-State men had captured the
legislature, they were removing the fetters that bound them.
They expected to submit the two constitutions to a fair vote
"within the shortest possible time." Federal troops were
still kept at Lecompton "to guard 28 scoundrels elected by
one-twentieth of a people in attempting to force upon the
other nineteen-twentieths, laws which they abhor. . . ."
[165]

When
the Lawrence Free-State convention of early December
reassembled a few weeks later, it decided to not participate
in the election for state officers of January 4, 1858, as
provided by the Lecompton convention. The conservative
elements, led by G. W. Brown, refused to agree to this, and
at a second meeting named a slate of officers, headed by
George W. Smith for governor. [166] Lewis Bodwell
appears to have been one of the "die hards," who to the last
remained loyal to the Topeka constitution. In a letter to
the American Home Missionary Society, March 18, 1858, he
bitterly attacked the "party of bolters," who contrary to
their decision of December 2, had nominated a ticket and by
the "most barefaced misrepresentations" obtained the votes
of three thousand to five thousand "nominally free state
men" for G. W. Smith. [167] This illustrates the
extremely radical position occupied by Bodwell, who would
reject most of his friends, if he thought they wavered on
the main issue, since the "bolters" probably included a
great majority of the Free-State men -- all of more
conservative views.

At
a time when the Topeka constitution was passing out of the
picture, and when it seemed more than possible that the
Lecompton constitution might be forced upon the people of
Kansas, contrary to the clear wishes of the majority,
Bodwell wrote Milton Badger of the American Home Missionary
Society for confidential advice as to the best course to
pursue. As a last resort should the Free-State men adopt a
policy of force? He regarded it a "fixed fact that
Kansas even with a slave constitution can never be a
slave state. He continued:

We have among
us those national democrats who go for a "free
white" state to the exclusion of the black man, bond
or free ; [169] we have the conservative
free state men, who will unite with anyone who will
promise to aid them in procuring peace -- (without asking
much about the price), & we have the tired out
toilers of other days; with the timid half-hearted
later arrivals; who, the one from weariness & the
other from weakness will go for "quiet" at any
cost. [170]

In
the struggle which may yet be demanded of us it is my
fear that by means which to me seem apparent,
these timid, & tired & conservative & selfish
friends (?) will be found caught in the snares now
being laid for them by our enemies, open or concealed,
& thus the thorough free state men, those who
came to make Kansas free for all Gods creatures, or die
in the attempt; may be reduced to a small company,
perhaps not to a minority but having not an
overwhelming majority. . . . ,

Is
it duty to submit & counsel submission to the Lec
[ompton]. Con [stitution] in any form or
under any circumstances? . . . [If the Administration
should admit Kansas under such a constitution, where ,
would duty lie?] In short shall we resist the swindle
whether in the hands of pretended friends or open foes,
& if need be by force prevent its existence a
single day?

When
men around me, & among them members of my own church
attach their names to documents which in my mind
throwaway all of vital principle connected with the
Kansas struggle, & declare themselves "in favor of
a free white state, to the exclusion of bond or free
blacks," I begin to tremble for our cause in Kansas.
. .

And
should one of your missionaries here deem it his duty
(when every man seemed needed) to take a very active
part in non-submission & resistance, would it in
your opinion be advisable that for the sake of the
Society he should first, resign his commission? . . .
[171]

Late
in April, 1858, congress attempted to end the troublesome
Kansas question by passing the compromise measure known as
the English bill, which promised immediate admission into
the union, if the people of Kansas would accept the
Lecompton constitution, along with a grant of land similar
to that offered Minnesota and other states. Bodwell
commented that he had heard of only a single person of
Free-State sentiments "who dares to seem an advocate of the
acceptance of the infamous land bribe, by which a cowardly
& corrupt partisan administration seeks to buy those
whom it cannot conquer by fear or force." Even the former
advocates of the Lecompton measure would not offer to
support this proposal, and election day was spoken of as
"the funeral of the English cheat." [172]

Since
Lewis Bodwell was so pronounced a partisan upon the issue of
slavery, and regarded all compromise as evidence of weakness
or moral corruption, he excused or even defended a resort to
force in defense of freedom. His attitude in this matter was
well illustrated in his relation to John Ritchie, a colorful
member of his church who did not hesitate to use force, when
the occasion arose. Ritchie was among those indicted for
manslaughter, because of alleged participation in the battle
of Hickory Point, but he escaped from the jail at Lecompton,
and fled to his original home in Indiana, where he remained
for a year. [173] After he returned in 1857,
"bygones were counted bygones." He promised to obtain all
the stone needed for the Congregational church, quarried and
delivered without cost, and in the work of building and
rebuilding, his teams were always ready, on "the King's
business." [174] He gave 160 acres for a
Congregational college (Washburn), and was a prominent
leader in reform and civic welfare. The charge of robbing
the mails in 1856 hung over his head, but Ritchie was
determined to resist "to the bitter

end"
all efforts to arrest him for this offense. On April 20,
1860; Leonard Arms, a deputy United States marshal, tried to
take him into custody upon this charge, but was met with
resistance, and when the officer went to the home of Ritchie
in a determined attempt to make arrest, Ritchie shot
him.

Ritchie
was tried for murder before Justice Joseph C. Miller of
Shawnee county, who found that the defendant had "committed
homicide, but one justifiable in the sight of God and man,"
and accordingly Ritchie was acquitted and discharged.
[175] Bodwell commented: "If at any time it seems
necessary for political purposes to raise an excitement,
which shall show what violent desperate rebels our people
are, up come any quantity of 'writs of '56' & the work
is done. An ex-deputy now in this place is said to have in
his possession 83 such papers." [176] Bodwell
reviewed the points brought out in the trial, and believed
that no one in his church would censure Ritchie, just as
public sentiment did not condemn him. [177] However,
the homicide "has fearfully disturbed" our community; &
is having a powerful effect upon the whole territory; while
present indications warrant us in believing that it will be
extensively used to the injury of our cause & that of
Freedom, by our enemies exaggerating, distorting or
concealing such portions of the case as may suit their
purpose." [178] Some time later the standing of
Ritchie in the First Congregational Church was investigated,
with Lewis Bodwell in attendance. The church committee
practically reaffirmed the findings of Justice Miller, and
freed Ritchie of any further discipline by the church.
[179] In this episode, as throughout his career in
Kansas, Bodwell identified himself with the more extreme
partisans of the Free State cause -- those who detested any
resort to compromise, and preferred the use of force to a
surrender to the powers of evil.

In
advocacy of the rightfulness of force, if properly used,
Bodwell might have pointed to the words of many leading
divines of the day, such as Henry Ward Beecher. It seems
probable that he would have agreed with a Methodist
preacher, who later described the course of events in
Kansas: "The right of way for peace was secured by the gun,
and. the right of moral and intellectual darkness gave way
before the insistent flashes of gospel light. . . . Such is
the transforming power of the Gun and the Gospel".
[180] The best pen picture of Lewis Bodwell, written
by Richard Cordley, places him in this light, when Bodwell
attended the Free-State meeting at Lecompton in December,
1857:

From the West came
the Topeka Company, and with them Brother Bodwell. He was
riding his faithful pony "Major" whom all old Kansas
ministers will remember . . .; he was booted and spurred,
wore a close-fitting cap, and had an Indian blanket
pinned over his shoulders; under the blanket were plainly
visible the muzzle of a Sharps rifle and the hilt of a
Colt's revolver. I did not see his Bible, but if you had
searched him, I have little doubt you would have found in
his right-hand coat-pocket a well-thumbed Greek
Testament, which he always carried, and used in leisure
moments. I did not see him reading it on that day, for he
believed in a division of labor. He came to Lecompton to
"watch": he would "pray" at some other time. His carbine
and revolver were not carried altogether as ornaments;
for the firm setting of his lips and the flashing of his
keen black eye plainly showed that when he once felt in
duty called upon to shoot, it would be very unpleasant
for somebody. Years later, during the war, when he was
traveling in behalf of the American Home Missionary
Society, he always carried his revolver under the cushion
of his carriage-seat, so as to be at all times instantly
available. He used to say, "If a man carry a revolver at
all, it is just as well to have it handy, for I have
noticed that when any shooting is to be done, it makes
all the difference in the world who gets the first shot."
[181]

From
the beginning of his service in Kansas, Lewis Bodwell
appears to have been eminently successful in his chosen
calling. His popularity as a preacher was undoubtedly due in
no small degree to his willingness to share the joys and
sorrows of his people, and to his quickness to lend a hand,
wherever needed. In a new country such qualities were more
appreciated than the "book larnin' " of a formal education,
with which he was much less equipped. Because of his
popularity, Bodwell played an important role in the early
history of his denomination in Kansas.

In
April, 1857, the first general meeting of Congregationalism
was held at Topeka, and the General Association of
Congregational Ministers and Churches of Kansas was
organized. By-laws and articles of faith were adopted, along
with resolutions strongly condemning slavery. [182]
Although not present at this meeting, Bodwell was among
those received into membership. He was also placed upon a
committee to consider the matter of a Congregational
college, and upon a second committee to solicit funds for
the building of churches in Kansas. [183]

In
October, 1858, when the general association met at
Manhattan, Bodwell presented a report from the business
committee upon the subject of tract societies and
colportage. The American Tract Society of Boston was praised
for its treatment of slavery as one of the "great sins of
the day." [184] The system of colportage, which
provided religious literature for those desiring it, was
praised by the report, and a colporteur was desired, to
perform this work for Kansas. To carry out this
recommendation, a committee on "home evangelization" was
named, "who should act as a committee on missions, church
extension and colportage, and should have general
oversight of the religious interests of the Territory."
[185] Lewis Bodwell was retained as a member of this
committee.

The committee on church
erection, upon which Bodwell had been placed by the general
association in 1857, also reported at the meeting of 1858.
Bodwell and Amory Hunting had gone east, and conferred with
the "church erection fund" committee, and also with the
American Congregational Union, and found a radical
difference between the two organizations. The union required
a church building to be completed to the amount asked of
them, before granting any aid, and made its own decisions on
all claims. The "church erection fund" committee, on the
contrary, apportioned their funds among the states and
territories, to be distributed by local committees, and gave
their funds at the start, merely requiring a bond for the
completion of the church, free of debt, within a specified
time. Since the churches on the frontier needed cash at the
beginning, the union was then of little use to them, while
the church erection fund committee had already sent $2,500
to Kansas, to be distributed among the churches at
Burlingame, Grasshopper Falls, Zeandale, Bloomington,
Eureka, Manhattan, Topeka, and Leavenworth.
[186]

The committee of the
general association upon the matter of a Congregational
college for Kansas, on which Bodwell and John Ritchie had
been placed by the annual meeting of 1857, also reported at
the meeting of 1858. In July, 1858, they had advertised for
bids for a location for the college, and Lawrence, Topeka,
and other cities made offers of land. The committee, with
Ritchie as chairman, reported in favor of a location at
Topeka, and the association adopted the report. A board of
trustees was named for the proposed college, with Bodwell as
temporary chairman. [187] The association drafted a
report, which included the following comments:

It is the
intention of the Association to put the college in motion
as early as possible, and to spare no pains to make it an
institution of the first order. Aid to a large amount has
already been promised. . . .
The professors have not yet
been selected, but it is hoped they will be before many
months. Nothing will be done in this line, however, till
the proper men can be found, as everything depends
on that. Three professors of the proper mental dimensions
are better than a dozen of a smaller style.
[188]

The offer of Topeka was not
to be binding upon the general association, unless the terms
were fulfilled in the specified time of six months -- too
short a period, considering the hard times in Kansas.
Nevertheless, the chief initial steps seem to have been
taken, when Lewis Bodwell, acting as temporary chairman of
the board of trustees of the college and moderator of the
approaching meeting of the general association, issued a
circular charging that Topeka had failed to make good her
promises. [189] In May, when the association met at
Lawrence, a special committee confirmed Bodwell's charge,
and its report was adopted, [190] thereby leaving
the matter of location again open, with Topeka, Lawrence,
Burlingame, . and Wabaunsee submitting proposals.

The offer of Lawrence was
regarded by the association as the most liberal, and was
accepted, and the projected institution, was named
"Monumental College,'" in memory of the victory of freedom
over slavery in Kansas. [191] The year 1860 was one
of extreme drought, which prevented work on the proposed
buildings, and at the next annual meeting of the
association, the college was moved back to Topeka, on terms
similar to those first offered. [192] The Civil War
caused a further delay, and it was not until 1865 that the
institution was finally incorporated as Lincoln College.
When it opened its doors the following year, Lewis Bodwell
was president of the board of trustees, apparently a
recognition of his services in the work of foundation.
[193]

The proposal to move the
college from Topeka to Lawrence resulted in much
disaffection in Bodwell's church in Topeka, during the
summer of 1859. Bodwell wrote to the American Home
Missionary Society that the change was "greatly, as I hope,
to the gain of the Institution, tho. my position in the
matter is productive of any but pleasant results," since
people found it hard to appreciate any move "which does not
make their place the center of beauty, attraction, profit,
&c, &c; the only place in which anything can
start & live." [194] Goaded into action
primarily because of the bad situation in his church,
Bodwell upon Sunday, June 19, 1859, "notified the Church
that after the expiration of his commission (Sept. 15) his
work here as a Missionary might probably be considered at an
end." [195] That evening a severe wind storm
destroyed most of the church building, upon which Bodwell
and his congregation had labored so faithfully.
[196] He went to Leavenworth to supply a temporary
vacancy caused by the resignation of the Rev. R. D. Parker,
and while there; wrote the Missionary Society that after the
expiration of the current year, he did not intend to return
to Topeka [.197] While Bodwell was absent, his
congregation considered the matter in dispute, and
unanimously voted to request their pastor to continue with
them, and to seek the necessary commission from the
Missionary Society. [198] Bodwell finally consented
to remain at Topeka, and remarked in a letter to the
Missionary Society:

My resignation
of this place was given in under circumstances &
for reasons, which in the minds of all my brethren
rendered such action justifiable & necessary. The
source of the difficulty was the change of location of
our proposed college. . . The feelings, remarks &
actions of certain persons in my ch'h. were such as in my
estimation, forbade any future harmony of action &
usefulness in community. [199]

Even before the summer of
1859, Lewis Bodwell had made up his mind that a larger field
of service was urgently caning him to leave his Topeka
pastorate. As a man of broad outlook and sympathies, he had
conceived a keen interest in the welfare of the whole
Western country, and in order to relieve the lack of members
of his calling, he had ministered in some degree to the
spiritual needs of nearby communities. [200] In the
discharge of his duties he traveled a good deal, and he soon
came to realize the great dearth of religious opportunities
endured by the settlers. Early in February, 1858, he voiced
the hope of his colleagues, that someone like Lum might be
kept in the field in Kansas "as a sort of agent &
itinerant." [201] Late in the summer Bodwell
stressed the matter more forcefully, stating that if an
exploring and traveling missionary, should be decided upon,
he would like to be considered a candidate, since he lacked
the "impedimenta" of a married man, although Lum was better
qualified. [202] He later added that the proposal
was not of his own seeking. His colleagues regarded him
favorably, as he was not, like Lum, encumbered with a
family. They agreed that such an agent "must be an
itinerant missionary, one whose 'home' is in his
saddle, & who has nothing to hinder his remaining one,
two, or four weeks in any place which might need him."
[203] When the Missionary Society could give them
such a man, they would cease talking of doing it
themselves.

When the general
association met at Manhattan the next month, it appointed a
committee on home evangelization, "who should act as a
committee on missions, church extension and
colportage, and should have general oversight of the
religious interests of the Territory." [204] Later
Bodwell was made chairman of this committee, and wrote to
the society that they unanimously believed the existing
laborers and system of labor inadequate to meet the pressing
demands. All agreed that the "home" of the worker should be
his saddle, like the Methodist circuit rider, since the
Congregationalists were equally as scattered as the
Methodists. Let the society give them one man for all
Kansas, or one for each of the two regions north and south
of the Kansas river, or even three or four. "It is not great
talent which we need, but great industry, activity,
perseverance & entire devotion to the work in
hand. [205]

The reply of Milton Badger
of the Missionary Society appears to have been critical of
the proposal, and reflected upon the wisdom if not the
propriety of Bodwell's suggestions. [206] Although
under fire by his superior officers, Bodwell resolutely
"stuck to his guns," and pointed out that he had always
consulted with Lum, and found him of like views. Concerning
his own standing and that of his colleagues, the society
should consult with at least two laymen in each church "who
shall be requested to state exactly the standing of the
minister in "his community, church & cong'n."
[207] One of the underlying sources of this
difficulty lay in the fact that the committee on home
evangelization of the general association of Kansas, of
which Bodwell was now chairman, in reality competed with the
Home Missionary Society for the control of Congregationalism
in Kansas. [208] The issue remained in abeyance for
some months, until a crisis arose in the affairs of Bodwell
at Topeka, when the whole question was reopened.

In the summer of 1859,
while acting as a substitute pastor at Leavenworth, Bodwell
wrote an extended letter to the Missionary Society, giving
details concerning the Congregational ministers in Kansas.
He believed northeastern Kansas to be the area most
deserving of attention by the society, since now, after the
resignation of Parker at Leavenworth, that organization had
only one regularly accredited representative in this
region-Storrs at Quindaro. Bodwell stated that Parker had
made arrangements for ministers at Elwood and Hiawatha. As
for Bodwell, he was undecided, but preferred Leavenworth to
Topeka. [209]

When Bodwell finally
decided to return to Topeka, he remarked that Lum had
intimated the intention of giving up his work as agent. "The
brethren are unanimous in the feeling that a laborer of this
kind should be now & every day in the field. . ."
[210] Bodwell returned to Topeka with this goal in
view, ,and with growing insistence reiterated the need of a
traveling missionary. In one of these letters he remarked
that he had worked in Kansas for two thirds of his Eastern
salary, and was now ready to do this work for two thirds of
his Kansas income. In regard to the agency, the missionary
committee of the general association desired "a winter &
summer activity; the greatest possible efficiency; &
economy as strict as you need." Because of the opposition of
the chief officials of the Missionary Society, Bodwell
stated that he had been unwilling to take up the matter
again, until their "pressing & fast growing want,
forced me toward it as the great work assigned the
Missionary Com." [ 211]

In March Bodwell wrote in a
still more positive manner that circumstances peculiarly
adapted him to the active pioneer life which was his choice,
and which seemed necessary to his bodily health. He was now
arranging his affairs in Topeka, so that he could leave in
the near future.

I now look for the
man who can do the work Topeka needs; while I turn to the
work which forms the plan of life; at least for my
younger years. Bro McVicar is the one whom I look
upon as the man for Topeka. He can come to a thriving
town; a ch'h now only the 2nd in size in Kansas; an
intelligent & appreciative community; a field still
large enough & hard enough to tax all his powers;
& one in which a good ministers good wife
could exert an influence second only to the minister
himself. I would place over the ch'h I love a minister in
all respects my equal, in many my superior; &; would
in addition give it the advantage of the added help
it much needs. I think myself able so to arrange it
that my successor may step into my present field with no
difficulty to him & no injury to the church. . . .
[212]

The term of the Rev. S. Y.
Lum as agent for Kansas had now expired, and he gave notice
of his intention to sever his connection with the Missionary
Society, thereby leaving the way open for the appointment of
Bodwell. [213] Bodwell appears to have made
immediate application, and during the month of March, 1860,
his closer friends and colleagues wrote the society,
recommending him for the position. These communications
praised him as entirely faithful and reliable, a hard worker
who performed his tasks with thoroughness and dispatch, and
a preacher and jealous missionary second to none in the
territory, who had the confidence of all his brethren.
[214] One wrote: "I believe he would do more
exploring in three months than Lum accomplished in three
years." [215] Another added: "And last, but not
least, . . . he has no farm and no
speculative schemes on hands. . . ." [216]
Along with these words of praise by his colleagues, Bodwell
had already acquired a good knowledge of affairs throughout
eastern Kansas, by virtue of his work for the committee on
home evangelization of the general association, and by his
tendency to "circulate about" wherever people were to be
found.

The American Home
Missionary Society appointed Bodwell to the position of
Kansas agent in April. He immediately accepted their offer,
although as "one of the youngest & least experienced" of
their laborers, he could not hope to do all that was needed,
which in their words" 'would tax the skill &
powers of an angelic laborer.' " [217] As to salary,
he believed that an income "equal to my present one, with
provision for expenses incidental to journeying (using my
own horse) would not under ordinary circumstances be too
large." A salary equal to that of the Baptist Home
Missionary Society's agents in Kansas, namely $800, from
which he paid his own expenses, did not seem extravagant,
but in any case, Bodwell assured his employers that he would
work "for any sum which you may see fit to
appropriate -- if it should but pay for clothing &
expenses, cheerfully & heartily. . . and. . . faithfully
perform what in my view the work which you have committed to
me demands." [218]

The acceptance by Lewis
Bodwell of the position of agent of the American Home
Missionary Society for Kansas, closed the first period of
his career in the West. The First Congregational Church of
Topeka released him from his responsibilities as pastor,
gave him their best wishes for his future work, and some
months later voted to accept his candidate, Peter McVicar,
as their new minister. [219] Not long after his
release from the Topeka church, Bodwell wrote to the
Missionary Society that his new work had begun very
pleasantly.

I am just now
visiting the vacant ch'hs & destitute communities of
this part of Kansas & am welcomed as hungry people do
their food. I hope within a short time to start to spend
3 or 4 weeks among the ch'hs & settlements of the
extreme S & SE parts of this Territory; it being my
desire to go into & through the valleys of the
Neosho, Osage, Marmaton & before the sickly season
comes on; if possible taking that time, to visit the
mountains, [220] in the hope of being able to go
along steadily with my work, & dodge "the chills,"
our great enemy. From all parts of the Territory the call
is that from Macedonia -- "Come help." [221]

Bodwell's early years in
Kansas had been marked by a devotion to duty as he saw it,
and a spirit of sacrifice which had won general approval. A
natural aptitude for preaching, and a willingness to pitch
in, wherever needed, and subjugate self for the good of the
cause, were among the greatest personal resources, of Lewis
Bodwell, which promised well for his future career as a
traveling missionary. Energy, hope, and enthusiasm were his
to a remarkable degree, qualities which counted for much on
the American frontier.

Notes

152. Since much of his
correspondence excoriates the Proslavery position, and
blames the administration for the Kansas troubles, it has
been difficult to avoid repetition of this theme. Before
arriving in Kansas, Bodwell expressed his position in a
vivid way, in a letter to John Hobbie (October 6, 1856), in
which he inveighed against the type of "Kansas Justice,"
which permitted "bands of robbers to plunder, bum, and kill"
When the Free-State men finally took the law into their own
hands, they were hunted by federal bayonets, like a gang of
outlaws. -- Letter in "Bodwell Scrapbook," pp. 2, 3, in
Kansas State Historical Society.

153. Bodwell to Hobbie,
October 17, 1856, in ibid., pp. 3, 4.

"The world rolls freedom's
glorious way,
And ripens with her sorrow,
Keep heart! Who bears the cross today
Shall wear the crown tomorrow."

154. Bodwell to Badger,
October 21, 1856. -- Bodwell Papers, Kansas State Historical
Society. Compare the following comments by Thaddeus Hyatt,
head of the National Kansas Committee, September 14, 1856
(Hyatt Papers of Kansas State Historical Society): Geary
would "succeed in patching up a peace," and "The Ruffians
will yield with an ill concealed grace," in the hope of
strengthening their position with help from the South. But
the Free-State men should prepare for a crisis after
election day. "Let us look well to the Ides of November".
After the sun goes down on the 4th of that month then
look for bloody work! We must be prepared! . . . All
the provisions & ammunition possible to crowd in must be
done."

155. The Kansas Tribune,
Topeka, February 2, 1857. Early in January of that year
Gov. Charles Robinson went to Boston, on business for the
new town of Quindaro. While there he saw Amos A. Lawrence,
the "Santa Claus" of the Free-State movement, who wrote in
his private journal (quoted in William Lawrence, Life 01
Amos A. Lawrence [Boston, 1891)], p. 124): "He
has resigned his office, and the plan is to give Governor
Geary, now a United States official, the popular vote, and
so help on the 'Free State' movement. Bought a fur coat for
Robinson." In the following March, about a week after Geary
resigned from the governorship, Robinson withdrew his
resignation, and reaffirmed support of the Topeka
constitution.

158. "If the Topeka
Constitution was treason, the Lecompton
one will be; and Congress must decide upon the
simple merits of the case.

159. A reference to the
territorial convention of the "National Democracy" at
Lecompton, January 12, 1857 -- the day that the Proslavery
legislature met for business. An address was later drawn up
by this body, which called upon "all good citizens,
regardless of party, to rally to law & order." --
Proceedings in The Kansas Weekly Herald of
Leavenworth, January 24. 1857.

160. Bodwell to Badger, May
15, 1857. Bodwell believed Quindaro destined to be the chief
port for central and southern Kansas, and stated that he
delivered the first sermon at this place. In his audience
were Gov. Charles Robinson and Mrs. Abelard Guthrie, the
latter of whom gave her Indian name to the town. -- "Bodwell
Scrapbook," p. 6.

161. The period of the
Lecompton constitutional struggle was a time of incessant
political meetings and conventions in Kansas.

162. Wilder, op. cit.,
p. 176, gives a copy of the resolutions. A letter,
marked "Private," of S. F. Tappan to T. W. Higginson, July
6, 1857 (Higginson Papers of Kansas State Historical
Society), gives a good summary of the Free-State program:
"Walker is a small man in Kansas affairs, he has succeeded
in buying out the 'Herald of Freedom,' and got Gurty Windy
Brown to pitch into our Topeka Constitution. But our party
are more united today than ever. .'. . If we can have a fair
and impartial election in October under the Organic Act. . .
,which Walker says can be done, our purpose is to take part,
elect the next Territorial Legislature and Delegate to
Congress. Have the Legislature meet, repeal all the
Territorial laws so called, pass an act prohibiting slavery
in Kansas, recognize the Topeka Government as the only one
in Kansas, memorialize Congress to do the same, and then
adjourn sine die. The Free-state Legislature will then
meet and adopt a. code of laws and enforce them. The
territorial officers will have no laws to enforce, and the
people will rally in support of the state organization. . .
. The bogus convention will meet, adopt a Constitution, and
if they submit it to the people we will vote it down. . . .
[But if they do not submit it, and if] Wash'n.
sustain them in their villainy, the people will take it up;
and there will be a march to Lecompton, and the bogus
delegates will be driven from the territory, or compel the
administration to endorse the concern. . ., and if Kansas is
admitted into the Union. . . in such a manner, to insist
upon the enforcement of our own government, at all
hazards."

"The harvest dawn is
near,
The year delays not long,
And he who sowed with many a tear,
Shall reap with many a song."

164. Wilder, op. cit.,
p. 199.

165. Letter of Bodwell,
dated December 3, 1857, clipped in the "Bodwell Scrapbook,"
pp. 9, 10. Concerning this convention, see
Stephenson, W. B., "The Political Career of General
James B. Lane," Publications of the Kansas State
Historical Society, v. III (1930), pp. 91, 92.

166. Wilder, op. cit.,
pp. 208, 206. The Free-State men entered the election of
officers under the Lecompton constitution of January, 1858,
and elected their entire slate of candidates.' They also
cast more votes against the constitution itself, than had
been cast in its favor in the preceding December. This
election brought into existence two rival "governments", of'
the same party, and eventually resulted in the complete
demise of the Topeka government, the Leavenworth convention
proposing a new constitution for Kansas.

167. Bodwell asserted that
the plea of the bolters was "the expediency of having a
government ready take up & kill the Lecompton
constitution, (if adopted) by resigning &c &c. ..
[J.] Calhoun [the president of the
Lecompton convention] is at Washingtonwith
the returns. All in his own power, subject only to the
will of the man at the White House who is our bitterest
enemy. If they will pass the Lecompton Con. & declare
the proslavery governor & legislature elected; I believe
that our people would know & carry out their policy of
'no submission' even tho 'the troops' stood on guard day
& night around the officials thus put over' us."

168. That the problem of a
final resort to force was a serious issue during, the
Lecompton struggle` see the article from The
Kansas Herald a/Freedom, Lawrence, December 5, 1857,
quoted m A., T. Andreas and W. G. Cutler, History 0/
the State 01 Kansas" p. 164. Robinson resisted the
proposal to use force to stamp out the Lecompton,
constitution.

169. This party was
organized at Lecompton. July 2, 1857, and desiring to
"commit no political errors" which might cause them to lose
Antislavery votes, they dropped the "Proslavery" subtitle,
and affirmed support of Cincinnati platform of the Democracy
of 1856.

170. On June 28, 185'7,
Robert J. Walker, the newly appointed governor of Kansas,
wrote to President Buchanan concerning the political parties
in the territory (St. Louis Republican, April 25,
1860, in "Kansas Territorial Clippings," v. 8, p. 848, in
Library of Kansas State Historical Society). He supposed the
whole number of settlers to be 24,000. Their active numbers
were about as follows: Free-State Democrats; 9,000;
Republicans, 8,000; Proslavery Democrats, 6,500; Proslavery
Know-Nothings, 500. . ,

Intense agitation over the
Lecompton issue, later produced a number of lesser factions,
particularly among the Free-State men. The more pronounced
radicals organized a secret society known as the "Danites,"
with an aggressive program, and with General Lane a leader.
Because of its extreme position, Robinson apparently
deserted it for the more conservative faction, in which G.
W. Brown of the Herald of Freedom was a leader.
Bodwell seems to have favored the Danites, and viewed all
efforts toward compromise as "sighs of selfish ambition
& deep moral corruption." In such a category was a
speech of Robinson, in which he remarked that "the talk
about consistency in a struggle like this is an
absurdity."

171. Bodwell's extended
letter on the Lecompton issue is dated March 18, 1858. The
American Home Missionary Society originally tried to avoid
the slavery issue, but gradually adopted an attitude of
opposition, since it was predominately a Northern
institution. By 1858 it denied missionary commissions to
slaveholders, but it continued to send missionaries to the
slave states, until the outbreak of the Civil War. Since it
was conservative in tone, and opposed to violent antislavery
agitation, it is safe to conclude that it opposed any resort
to force, even under the circumstances that Bodwell
suggests. -- see Goodykoontz, C. B., Home Missions on the
American Frontier, Chap. IX. '

172. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S., June 25, 1858. The grant of land proposed by the English
bill simply followed a well-established custom in this
matter, and was closely patterned after the grant to
Minnesota, but it was strongly objected to by the
Antislavery propagandists, as a corrupt bribe to the people
of Kansas. That this was a harsh appraisal of the measure,
see the article by Frank Heywood Hodder, "Some
Aspects of the English Bill for the Admission of Kansas,"
Kansas Historical Collections, v. X, pp.
2240-232. The alternative to non-acceptance, however,
the exclusion of Kansas from the union until a much larger
population were attained, was a more reprehensible clause of
the bill. In August, 1858, the entire proposal was voted
down by a. large majority, bearing out Bodwell's comment
upon the feelings of Kansans.

173. 'The Kansas
Tribune, Topeka, December 1, 1856. Judging from the
account by Bodwell entitled, "John Ritchie: A Pastor's
Sketch" "Bodwell Scrapbook," pp. 23-25), under entry of
November 19, 1856, it seems probable that Bodwell was among
those helping Ritchie to escape.

174. Bodwell A. H. M. S.,
April 27, 1860: "Mr. Ritchie formerly an Indiana Jackson
Democrat; is & for years has been a thoroughly
anti-slavery Republican and was chosen by the people of this
county to represent them," both in the Leavenworth &:
Wyandott [e] constitutional conventions. He is a man
having property worth 20 to 80 thousand dollars who statedly
devotes one tenth of his income to educational benevolent
and religious uses. He is intensely hated by a large class
of men among us, for his deep interest & earnest efforts
in 'regard to all the great reforms of the day, &:
though not always as it seems to us most wise in his acts
&: words; still thoroughly & heartily in earnest in
his desires for the good of all men."

175. Account of trial and
copy of court proceedings in extra of Topeka State
Record, April 23, 1860. Lane, one of the chief lawyers
for the defense, made an impassioned appeal for Ritchie,
against the "murderer" who "broke" into his home. The
decision of Justice Miller was received with great
satisfaction by many people. Mayor Farnsworth presided at a
mass meeting which deprecated the homicide, but agreed in
the future to "resist with every legitimate and proper
means" all such "fictitious, unjust and tyrannical"
accusations.

176. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S., April 27, 1860.

177. Ibid. The
Topeka Tribune (April 28, 1860) argued that mail
robbery was a federal offense punishable by U. S. laws, and
that to resist a federal marshal was in itself a federal
offense.

178. Bodwell's letter of
April 27, 1860. The incident inflamed party spirit, but did
not have the extreme effects feared by Bodwell. The
Free-State party took a position of pronounced hostility to
the writs, as contrary to the amnesty act 'of 1859, but
there were those who did not praise Ritchie for his part.
The Topeka Tribune commented on May 19: "Law and
order men turn out and give him a wide path, as they would
turn from the approach of a monster; but the Revolutionists
have greeted him as their captain, and. have been heard to
compliment him on his manliness.

179. "Record Book" of First
Congregational Church, entry of May 19, 1861. The church
committee, consisting of H. W. Farnsworth, H. D. Rice, and
H. Hannahs, concluded. that Ritchie had resorted to force
only when he regarded his life in danger. Some years later
the Topeka church expelled Ritchie for making charges
against a fellow member which he could not prove to the
satisfaction of the church and for which he was unwilling to
make a retraction.

For help in this and other
matters connected with the records of this church, the
writer is indebted to Dr. Charles Louis Atkins, pastor of
the church, 1927-1943.

180. The Rev. H. D. Fisher,
The Gun and the Gospel (Kansas City, Mo., 1902, 4th
ed.), introductory chapter, pp. viii, x: "The gun as an
emblem of soldierly prowess has often changed the maps of
the world, has destroyed inquisitions and prisons. . . ; it
has furnished themes for poets, material for historians, and
made a highway for civilization; it has tunneled the hills
and scaled the mountains, crossed seas and continents, and
planted symbols of Christianity upon the islands of the
seas; it has preserved and it has demolished nations; and
with the sword, an emblem of power has established the
prerogatives of those mightier weapons of civilization and
christianity, the pen and the pulpit." In the wake of
conquering armies follows "the Evangel of Peace on Earth,
the Gospel."

181. Cordley's article in
The Congregational Quarterly, Boston, July, 1876; p.8
of the reprint. Since there is no other sketch that is so
penetrating, the writer takes the liberty of including it
here, with due apology to the author. So far as is known,
Bodwell was not a member of the Topeka company.
American history affords many
examples of "fighting parsons" who were ready to shoulder
the gun in the interest of what they deemed right. In this
same mood is the song of the present war, entitled: "Praise
the Lord, and Pass the Ammunition."

182. Minutes of the
General Association of Congregational Ministers &
Churches in Kansas, April 25-27, 1851, Appendix I,
pp. 2-9 (The Congregational Record, v. 1). There were
then eight organized churches of this denomination in
Kansas. The resolutions as to slavery follow:

"Resolved,
1. That the system of American Chattel Slavery is a high
crime against God and humanity, and, as such, is prima
facie evidence against the Christian character of tho Be
implicated in it.
"2. That this Association will
in no manner fellowship any other ecclesiastical body which
willfully sustains, directly or indirectly, that
system."

183. Ibid. The
minutes (Appendix I, pp. 11, 12) note that because of "a
simultaneous breaking in of an overflowing tide" of
emigrants, the notable lack of the essentials of life, and
the bad effects of the drought of 1856, the churches in
Kansas could not be expected to do much to support
themselves, and must apply for outside help. They needed
$20,000 for erecting churches throughout the territory.

184. At the annual meeting
in 1859, however, the association condemned this society for
its position upon slavery.

185. Congregational
Record, (v. I, No. 1) January, 1859, pp. 4-8. County
Bible societies were favored, with a Bible, tract, and
Sunday school book depository at Lawrence. The convention
named Bodwell for this work in Shawnee county. Concerning
the many "small, yet important" settlements, they "deem it
expedient to employ missionaries for these fields, who shall
distribute their labors among them; and that we instruct the
committee on home evangelization to procure such laborers,
if possible."

186. "Minutes of the
General Association," October 8, 1858, in ibid., pp.
8, 4. In his A History of the Congregational Churches in
the United States (New York, 1900), pp. 383, 384
Williston Walker notes that the main work of the union was
the payment of "last bills," after needy churches had done
all in their power to provide themselves with buildings. By
1893 it had completed 2,340 houses of worship and 309
parsonages. In. 1860 it gave a small sum to aid the building
of Bodwell's church at Topeka.
In an article by Lewis
Bodwell, R. D. Parker, and H. M. Simpson, entitled "The
American Home Missionary Society and the American Missionary
Association" (Congregational Record, v. II, No. 4, p.
80), it was stated that in the five preceding years (to
October, 1860) the churches of Kansas had received about
$17,500 from the first of these societies, and not less than
$5,000 from the second. This was many times more than what
they had contributed to the same organizations.

187. "Minutes," October
8-11, 1858, in ibid., (v. I, No. 1) January, 1859, p.
8; also "An Historical Sketch of Washburn College, by the
President" (Peter McVicar), p. 2, in Library of Kansas State
Historical Society. A board of fourteen trustees was named,
including Bodwell, R. Cordley, C. E. Blood, G. C. Morse, R.
D. Parker, and others, who were to hold office for two
years. A basis of organization was also drafted for the
proposed college. The offer of Topeka included: "160 acres
of land within a mile and a half of Topeka; 20 acres on
Topeka "town-site; 840 acres in. the Territory, as. an
endowment; and a building, equal to 40 by 5.0 feet, and two
stones high, of stone or brick, to be completed on or before
Jan 1, 1860." The board of trustees was to decide as to the
fulfillment of these terms.

188. "Minutes," pp. 13-16.
The report recommended "that they abandon the Western system
of starvation salaries, and proceed at once to offer
and pay liberal salaries to their professors --
thus securing first-class men." Long before they had
arranged for a source of revenue, they were planning in a
detailed way for the personnel of the college-to-be. The
charter set up a board of trustees, and "directed them how
to invest their money not yet secured, and how to dispose of
property not yet obtained." This was characteristic of the
prophetic vision of the frontiersmen, who were building a
greater world-to-be, even though still a "castle in the
air."

189. In its issue of August
25, 1859, the Topeka Tribune gave an extended
account, entitled, "The Congregational College." According
to this, Topeka was required to fulfill her promises very
promptly, and if she failed, a special meeting of the
college trustees was to be called, early in January, 1859.
The minutes of the association were not published until some
time after this, and neither Bodwell as temporary chairman,
nor the, citizens of Topeka realized the urgency of the
matter, until too late. By early April the town had
obtained. both the necessary land and money, and was ready
to make the final transfers, etc., and begin the building,
when Bodwell made his charge of nonfulfillment. . .

190. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S., September 14, 1859: "As to the right or wrong of my
action, I trust it will be enough to say that in a meeting
of 12 ministers & 12 delegates, representing 10 of our
ch'hs that action was endorsed by a vote of 22 to 1, &
he from Topeka."

191. Topeka Tribune)
August 25, 1859; The Kansas Press) Cottonwood
Falls, June 13, 1859; McVicar's sketch, p. 3; "Minutes" of
the association, Congregational Record) (v. I; No. 3)
July, 1859, pp. 44-47. Lawrence offered the college 170
acres near the town, 1,220 acres elsewhere in the territory,
151 town lots, and a sum of money, if it would locate there.
These liberal terms illustrate the intense rivalry between
the towns, which Bodwell described as "astonishing, &
when not contemptible is ridiculous." He was named to the
board of trustees of Monumental College.

192. McVicar's sketch of
Washburn College, p. 4.

193. Andreas-Cutler, op.
cit., p. 545. In 1866 Bodwell returned for a second
pastorate of nearly three years at the Topeka church, which
was closely connected with the college. To help the new
institution, he wrote a letter printed in connection with
"An appeal to Congregational Churches in behalf of Lincoln,
College," in which he called attention to the great need of
an "educated and godly ministry." His travels had shown that
"Whole towns and counties, with hundreds and thousands of
inhabitants are destitute of needed preaching." They needed
educational facilities close at hand, to supply the need of
a trained ministry.

194. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S.. June 11, 1859.

195 "Church Record Book" of
First Congregational Church, Topeka. Action on Bodwell's
resignation was deferred. On July 18 Bodwell repeated his
notice.

196. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S., June 22, 1859. This was reminiscent of the old
superstition that troubles never come singly.

197. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S., August 4, 1859.

198. "Church Record Book,"
entry of August 15, 1859.

199. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S., September 14, 1859. (Note his private abbreviation for
church&emdash;"ch'h." now consented to apply for the place
at Topeka, "because the ch'h is now unanimous in
upholding my character & labors & requesting me to
remain -- because persons wishing 'to join us will hold off
if I give countenance to the idea that I am forced away --
because even among members of other ch'hs, and those who are
not religious, & particularly the young & middle
aged -- as I am informed there is in the community but one
mind in regard to my remaining here." When he wrote in
December, the evil results in his church from the Monumental
College episode seemed pretty well ended. "In my own church
& congregation all difficulties of a local nature seem
to have yielded to a course of treatment conciliatory yet
firm & unflinching. . . ." He rejoiced that
"unthinking local prejudice" had been overruled, and
confidence in the minister increased. He seized this
opportunity to begin his highly successful revival
campaign.

200. The American Home
Missionary Society frowned upon any elaborate, system of
itinerancy (see Goodykoontz, op. cit., pp.
181-183), on the theory that any good accomplished by one
itinerant was lost before another appeared, and that a,
better policy was to help individual churches, until they
could support themselves. Instead of itinerancy, this
organization encouraged its missionaries to preach in nearby
places, as was done by Bodwell, and made its chief goal the
establishment of permanent pastorates in places of
importance&emdash;"going" communities.

201. Bodwell to Badger,
February 4, 1858. Lum never traveled a great deal, which
partly explains the general feeling in this matter.

202. Bodwell to Badger,
August 11, 1858. He remarked that even his' own congregation
admitted the need of such an agent, although unwilling to
see him go. A little later H. W. Farnsworth wrote for the
trustees of the Topeka church that Bodwell's removal would
be regarded with "extreme regret." For him to labor as a
general missionary meets not with a single approving voice
in this community."

206. The nature of Badger's
letter can be inferred from Bodwell's reply of February 7,
1859. Since Lum was their regularly appointed agent for
Kansas, the executives of the Missionary Society probably
regarded it the plain duty of their missionaries to confer
with him. They apparently did not realize that he did not
travel much, and that he himself favored the proposed
change. On March 81, 1860, Henry M. Simpson of Lawrence,
another member with Bodwell of the committee on home
missions, wrote to the society that some years before Lum
and several others had had the idea of employing Bodwell, as
an exploring agent, independent of the Missionary Society,
but had dropped the plan when they learned the attitude of
the society.

207. As their agent Lum
could inform them with greater certainty than he (Bodwell).
He could be asked as to the standing of Bodwell, as
preacher, citizen, etc. "Does the business of his calling
employ him fully? Do you think it his great & principal
aim? . . . Do you judge that 'if able his people
would unite to support him; or is he kept because cheap,
until a better chance offers? . . . If unknown to me good
& valid reasons exist why I have not their full &
united confidence, I wish to know it, in any way I
can, that I may seek to amend or get out of the way." --
(Signed) Lewis Bodwell.

208. This cleavage was
essentially that of the frontier against the older and more
mature East. The west was always desirous of help --
financial and otherwise, but in spite of this, want_ its own
freedom of action in all things. With his strongly developed
sense of individualism, the true frontiersman could never
consent to the doctrine that "he who pays the -- fiddler has
a right to call the tune."

209. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S., August 4, 1859.

210. Bodwell to A. H. M.
S., September 14, 1859.

211. Bodwell to Badger,
February 8, 1860: "Evangelical Kansas is in the main
the foster child of free New England, & it is not
strange that she should adopt her mothers views. . . . Byrd,
& Lum, Jones, Blood, Copeland, Adair, &c. &c.
were here not because you selected them but because they
came, & who should possess & enjoy the vineyard but
he who planted,. walled & watered it."
In his fourth annual report,
late in February, 1860, Bodwell described the great success
he had attained in his revival, and renewed his plea for an
agent, even at a low salary. "The cry is however not 'more
pay' but 'more laborers'; & if I mistake not the church
has yet in its coffers the answers to many of its
apparently unanswered prayers."

212. Bodwell to Badger,
March 12, 1860. .

213. Henry M. Simpson to A.
H. M. S., March 81, '1860, recommending Bodwell. He asserted
that Lum had always disliked the work, and had not been away
from home over two months in the past year, usually
preaching at Lawrence, where Cordley was now pastor. Simpson
charged that Lum had done nothing worth 'while in Kansas,
had organized no churches or Sabbath schools, but instead
had speculated in real estate.

214. Rev. J. D. Liggett to
Milton Badger, March 26, 1860; also Richard Cordley to A. H.
M. S., March 24, 1800. Cordley termed the preference for
Bodwell unanimous among the brethern: "He is not a perfect
man, nor is he your full pattern, but we think he combines
as many of the elements needed by the work 'now required as
any man we know." Bodwell's health required constant
exercise, which he could obtain in the saddle.

215. Rev. R. D. Parker to
Doctor Badger; March 29, 1860 (marked private). He thought
two active men one north and one south of the Kansas river,
"could do as much for the cause of Xy, if permitted to
itinerate; as four men could do shut up in some little town
like Quindaro or Emporia."

216. Letter of Liggett,
cited above: "It is a sad statement, nevertheless it seems
to me that getting farms and improving them has engrossed
more of the time of many of your missionaries in this
territory, than the work of the Lord has. . . ."

217. Bodwell to Badger,
April 24, 1860.

218. Ibid. "I could
not consistently & absolutely offer to do the work for
less than my present salary." At the time of his
reappointment in September, 1859, the Topeka church offered
to make his salary $600, of which they would pay $200, and
the society the rest. Bodwell's salary proposals for his new
position were notably liberal, but the reader will note that
they were not as liberal as what he had proposed, before
obtaining the appointment. Since no definite agreement had
been made, previous to obtaining the appointment, Bodwell
took advantage of his stronger position, to advance his
arguments as to a proper salary.

219. "Church Record Book,"
entry of May 5, 1860. In November, 1860, it was unanimously
voted to invite McVicar to be their minister, at a salary of
$600, McVicar could not leave Andover immediately, and
Bodwell occasionally preached to the church, in the interim.
He was much provoked that McVicar could not get away sooner,
and wrote June 11, 1860: "Do the Andover Profs understand
that with us, every day is worth a month in old established
slow moving N. England."

220. Bodwell expected to be
sent by the society on a brief, trip to Colorado, but later
orders reversed this. He had regarded the rush to Pikes Peak
as a movement of "floaters," similar to the Frazer river
boom, but he was willing to visit the diggings, in the
interest of religion.

221. Bodwell to Badger,
June 5, 1860. As an itinerant or traveling missionary
Bodwell had many exciting experiences, of which none was
more harrowing than his close call from death in the
Quantrill raid. In 1866 he returned to the Topeka church,
where he served a second pastorate of nearly three years. In
1,869, due to the ill health of himself and wife, he
resigned and returned to the sanitarium at Clifton Springs,
N. Y., where he became chaplain. He died in 1894. His
correspondence for the later years in Kansas, as found in
the collection of the Kansas State Historical Society, is
very extensive, The Bodwell Papers appear to have been,
originally, a part of the correspondence of the American
Home Missionary Society, the main collection of which is now
in the care of the Chicago Theological Seminary.